Japan were an English new wave band formed in 1974 in Catford, South London by David Sylvian, Steve Jansen (drums) and Mick Karn, joined by Richard Barbieri (keyboards) and Rob Dean the following year. Initially a glam rock-inspired band, Japan developed their sound and androgynous look to incorporate electronic music and foreign influences.
David Sylvian is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly electronic sound made them an important influence on the UK's early-1980s New Romantic scene.
Andonis Michaelides, better known as Mick Karn, was an English-Cypriot musician and songwriter who rose to fame as the bassist for the art rock/new wave band Japan. His distinctive fretless bass guitar sound and melodic playing style were a trademark of the band's sound.
Steve Jansen is an English musician, composer and record producer.
Tin Drum is the fifth and final studio album by English band Japan, released in November 1981 by Virgin Records. It peaked at No. 12 on the UK charts, and featured the top 5 single "Ghosts". It has received acclaim as the band's best and most original work.
Gentlemen Take Polaroids is the fourth studio album by the English band Japan, released in November 1980 by Virgin Records.
Oil on Canvas is a live album by the English band Japan, released in June 1983 by Virgin Records. It was released six months after the band had broken up, and became their highest charting album in the UK, peaking at number 5. It has been certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry for sales in excess of 100,000 copies.
Everything and Nothing is a compilation album by David Sylvian. Released in October 2000, the album contains previously released and unreleased, re-recorded, and alternate versions of tracks from Sylvian's twenty years with Virgin Records. The record peaked at no.57 in the UK albums chart.
"Ghosts" is a song by English band Japan. It was released in edited form in March 1982 as the third single from their 1981 album Tin Drum.
Exorcising Ghosts is a compilation album by the British band Japan, released in November 1984 by record label Virgin.
The Very Best of Japan is a compilation album by the British band Japan, released worldwide in 2006 by EMI Music.
Japan is an album by the British band Japan, released in the United States in March 1982 on the Epic Records label. It was the first US release of the band's material recorded for Virgin Records in the UK, and was a combination of most of Tin Drum with three tracks from Gentlemen Take Polaroids. It was released at a time when the band was beginning to break up. Despite the group's popularity in Europe and Asia, and a cult following in the US, the album did not break into the Billboard 200 chart. However, it did peak at number 204 on the Bubbling Under the Top LPs chart.
"Bamboo Houses" is a song by Japanese musician-composer Ryuichi Sakamoto and English singer-songwriter David Sylvian, released on Virgin Records in 1982. It reached number 30 in the UK charts in the second week of August 1982.
"Nightporter" is a song by English new wave band Japan. The song originally featured on the band's fourth album Gentlemen Take Polaroids in 1980. However, it was then remixed by Steve Nye and released as a single in November 1982. The single peaked at number 29 on the UK Singles Chart.
World Citizen is an EP by Ryuichi Sakamoto and David Sylvian. It was originally released in 2003 in Japan before being released in the UK the following year on Sylvian's label Samadhi Sound; the two editions have different track lists and different covers. The EP was created as part of a project called Chain Music instigated by Ryuichi Sakamoto. A remix of "World Citizen " was later included on Sakamoto's 2004 solo album Chasm and Sylvian's 2010 compilation Sleepwalkers; the 2022 reissue of the latter additionally adds in "World Citizen".
"Let the Happiness In" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Sylvian. It is the first single from his album Secrets of the Beehive.
The Art of Parties is a song by the British band Japan.
"Cantonese Boy" is a song by English new wave band Japan, released in May 1982 as the fourth and final single from their 1981 album Tin Drum. The single peaked at number 24 on the UK Singles Chart. The song refers to the enlistment of a Cantonese boy to the Chinese Red Army.
"European Son" is a song by the British band Japan.
"Canton" is an instrumental song by English new wave band Japan. It was originally released on the album Tin Drum in 1981, and was then released as the only single from the live album Oil on Canvas in May 1983. It peaked at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.
